After a Slew of Wise Acquisitions, the Philadelphia Eagles Acquire a Clunker in WR Arrelious Benn

By Joe Doris

Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

Oh, the always ponderous and forever unexplained circumstance of the NFL bust.

The term ‘bust’ typically refers to an athlete that was expected to thrive and prosper at the professional level, but instead he never finds his groove and ends up falling quickly and catastrophically out of one of the most competitive career fields in existence.

Therefore, I am very comfortable in labeling WR Arrelious Benn a legitimate NFL bust, as the second-round draft pick has totaled a measly 862 yards and 5 touchdowns in his three seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Last season was a culmination of complete embarrassment for the University of Illinois product, as Benn only caught four balls for 26 yards in eight games with the Bucs in 2012.

We all know that new Eagles head coach Chip Kelly loves to have speed all throughout his offense, but Benn’s inability to avoid coverage and sub-par route running ability overshadows his highly impressive jets. If you can’t get open and you can’t get the ball in your hands, then your speed is worthless.

Kelly and the Eagles already house super-human speed across their receiving corps, with WRs DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, and youngster Damaris Johnson, so I feel that it would be smart for the Eagles to look for a bulky, physical wide receiver at this point instead of focusing primarily on speed.

Of course there are plenty of NFL players, and wide receivers especially, that have been bigger disappointments than Benn, but as a highly-touted second-round pick his career has been truly pathetic.

Hopefully Benn can experience a revival in his new home, sporting the always-spunky Eagles’ green, but after three years of hopelessness, I truly doubt that Benn will ever be relevant.